Filed under: Budget , Sedan , Plants/Manufacturing , Subaru , Toyota Subaru may be set to end production of the Toyota Camry at its Lafayette, IN facility by 2017, according to a report from the Louisville Journal-Courier and a CBS affiliate in Columbia, South Carolina . Speaking to the plant’s Executive Vice President Tom Easterday, the whole affair sounds like a done deal. “Based on changes in Toyota’s production plans, they have decided that the award-winning Camry production contract will not be renewed,” Easterday said. Easterday was quick to emphasize that just because Camry production would end, doesn’t mean jobs will be lost. “There will be no loss of jobs at SIA as a result of this,” he said, before adding that the loss of Camry production will have no impact Subaru’s $400 million investment to ready the plant for Impreza production in 2016 . That said, adding a promised 900 jobs may take longer than originally planned, as Camry production staff are set to be retrained on Subaru production. SIA currently has the capacity to produce 100,000 Camrys per year, and began production of the family sedan in 2007 alongside production of the Subaru Outback , Legacy and eventually, the soon-to-be-discontinued Tribeca . We spoke via email with Toyota spokesperson Curt McAllister, who said, “We are not in position to discuss production plans at this time.” Subaru has not responded as of this writing, but we’ll update this post as soon we hear something. Subaru Indiana plant to stop building Toyota Camry originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 15 Nov 2013 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds .

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs , Japan , Toyota Toyota has had number of chiefs over its 76-year history, but none ever served as long as Eiji Toyoda. The younger cousin of the company’s founder served as president of the automaker from 1967 to 1982 and as chairman of the Toyota Motor Corporation for another ten years following the unification of the manufacturing and sales divisions. During his 25 years at the helm, Eiji Toyoda (pictured above in 1967) was credited with establishing the company’s headquarters in Toyota City, spearheading the development of the Prius , expanding production overseas for the first time, launching the Lexus brand and turning Toyota from a minor player into one of the largest automakers in the world. Even after his retirement in 1992, he remained an honorary chairman and close advisor to his successors, and chaired the company’s museum. He died of heart failure, ending a 100-year life that started on September 12, 1913, before the company that bore his family’s name (albeit slightly modified) had even started building automatic looms, let alone automobiles. We extend our condolences to the Toyoda family and our congratulations on an accomplished life. Eiji Toyoda dead at 100 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 17 Sep 2013 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

Filed under: Government/Legal , Recalls , Safety , Toyota Toyota is going to be back in the spotlight, as the first of its unintended acceleration lawsuits is headed for trial. This case covers a Los Angeles sushi shop owner, Noriko Uno. According to the what the family told The Detroit News , Uno only put about 10,000 miles on her 2006 Toyota Camry in four years. Uno was apparently afraid of high speeds, avoiding the freeway and taking a route home along LA’s surface streets to avoid them. On August 28, 2009, Uno’s Camry suddenly accelerated to 100 miles per hour, eventually striking a telephone poll and a tree and killing her. The family contends that Uno attempted to step on the brakes and pull the emergency brake, neither of which brought her speed under control, while Toyota maintains that improperly installed floormats and driver error have been behind the majority of the 80 cases expected to be heard in court. In Uno’s case, The Detroit News is expecting the trial to focus on the lack of an override if the gas and brake pedals were pressed at the same time. Brake overrides were installed on Toyota’s European fleet. The Uno family attorney will need to prove to the jury that it wasn’t driver error that killed Noriko Uno. Uno’s case will be a bellwether case, which other state courts will use to predict potential outcomes for similar lawsuits.

Filed under: Car Buying , Sedan , Toyota , Earnings/Financials We’ve been watching for some time now as Toyota has piled more incentives on the hood of its Camry sedan, and Automotive News reports that the we’re not the only ones with raised eyebrows. The current Camry hasn’t even been on the market for two years, but the family sedan segment is more hotly contested than it has been in years. It’s that high level of competition that has led the automaker to uncharacteristically add more money on the hood in order to assure it maintains its long-held title of America’s Best-Selling Car, a mantle it has owned for a dozen years. It’s ramping up fleet sales, too. According to the analysts at TrueCar , Toyota has bumped incentives per unit every month this year, now totaling some $2,750 as of May, a 38-percent hike over this time last year. That’s more spiff money than the segment’s other best sellers, the Nissan Altima ($2,400), Ford Fusion ($2,300) and Honda Accord ($1,400), all of whom have actually decreased their incentive spend by 20- to 40-percent over the same period. The ramp up in incentive spending and fleet sales has analysts concerned that Toyota will tarnish the Camry’s historically sterling resale value. ALG pegs the 2013 Camry’s current 36-month residual value at 54.4 percent, well ahead of the segment average’s 50.9 percent (but shy of the Accord’s 55.6 percent). However, analysts are concerned that as the current generation ages, their resale values will eventually plummet if incentives continue to increase as Toyota looks to keep the Camry’s best-selling car crown going forward. Automotive News cites R.L.

MIAMI (May 28, 2013) — Toyota’s commitment to the environment is a way of life, extending across operations and epitomized by the Toyota Prius Family of vehicles. Hispanics across the country are increasingly becoming environmentally aware, and in an effort to help the Hispanic community further embrace sustainability, Toyota is providing them with the tools necessary to continue on the path of going green.

TORRANCE, Calif., (May 16, 2013) –The editors of Kelley Blue Book ( www.Kbb.com ) selected the 2013 Prius v and the 2013 Avalon for their list of 10 Best Family Cars . The list is compiled annually by KBB.com editors to highlight vehicles that address unique family specifications and situations, and offer innovation.

Louisville, Ky. – May 13, 2013 – Toyota and the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL) are launching Toyota Family Learning, a six-year initiative that will create a new model for literacy by expanding it beyond the walls of the classroom and into homes and communities.